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Bamboo and rattan (1)

First of three parts

Northern Luzon has always been famous for its vast areas – although now rapidly diminishing –covered by forests of pine (saleng), dipterocarps (such as narra), and oak-laurel species (such as palayon).

As our original forests are depleted, we continuously hear about this and that reforestation and forest conservation program by government and private development agencies. We often hear about wide tracts being replanted to fast-growing broadleaf species like alnus, gmelina, and ipil-ipil – hopefully to hasten the reforesting process.

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What many don’t realize, however, is that over-logging also victimizes an immense assortment of other plant species that enhance the rich biodiversity so typical of tropical and subtropical rain forests, monsoon forests, and brushland or savannah.

These include tree and brush species that might not be as well-known or glamorous as pine or narra, or as exquisite as ferns and orchids, but are just as valuable to the environment and society as a whole, but to local ecological balance and livelihood in particular.

We should not just presume that reforestation will so easily restore such diversity. Replanting denuded areas should ensure a modest amount of variety, by providing a wide range of stock seedlings.

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Personally, I am very partial to giving more attention to bamboo (kawayan et al.) and rattan (uway et al.), in all their splendid diversity. In my own experience, it is hard to find government tree nurseries that specialize in, or at least offer a good selection of, bamboo and rattan species and varieties ready for replanting.

(I know one based in Manila, and another one in Baguio, but both are privately operated and not very well-publicized. If the BFD has a bamboo and rattan nursery nearby – I haven’t found one yet – somebody please tell me quick!)

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For now, let’s focus on bamboo, which belongs to the grass family. (Next week, we turn to rattan, which, although it’s often mistaken as a type or close relative of bamboo, actually represents a sub-branch of the palm family).

Bamboos are the most diverse group of plants in the grass family, with estimates ranging from 1,100 to 1,500 species grouped under 60-90 genera.

These tree-like plants are very adaptable and have a wide tropical and subtropical distribution, ranging from 46 deg N to 47 deg S latitude. Some species can survive sub-alpine climates in elevations of up to 4,000 meters, such as those found in the Himalayas and parts of China. At present, it grows over wide areas of Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

This diversity emphasizes the myriad uses of bamboo that humanity has found. Bamboo is so tied up with people’s lives worldwide, it has been called the “wood of the poor” in India, “friend of the people” in China, and “brother” in Vietnam.

The nice thing about bamboos is that they are so prolific even though they flower rarely or infrequently. For example, each average mature bamboo will grow several full-length, full-diameter culms (stems) each year. You can harvest a few mature culms from one clump each year, but the clump will continue to grow and produce more culms, unlike single-trunk trees. In the rainy season, a single culm can grow several inches overnight, and reach its full height within a week.

The International Network in Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), whose website provides much useful information, estimates that a single bamboo clump can produce up to 15 kilometers of usable pole (up to 30 cm diameter) in its lifetime.

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The most obvious uses of bamboo, at least in its indigenous Asian setting but increasingly becoming popular worldwide, are for the construction of houses and other light structures (such as foot bridges), furniture, and household utensils, not to mention the food value of bamboo shoots.

It might surprise us to know that even in highly-industrialized countries such as Japan, bamboo is still used as scaffolding material in the construction of high-rise buildings. More and more paper manufacturers in Asia are using bamboo as raw material.

If you remain unimpressed about the immense variety of uses of bamboo, the INBAR website estimates about 1,500 “documented traditional uses for bamboo – from cradle to coffin.” The website lists a few, ranging from aphrodisiac to musical instruments, from acupuncture needles to aircraft parts, from lightbulb filaments to weaving looms, from irrigation pipes to flagpoles.

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But I digress. The original reason why I got interested in bamboo is that the steep slopes back of our quaint little neighborhood up on the mountains have become increasingly bare and gullied these past few years.

I’ve seen rural villages use bamboo very effectively to quickly restore some cover to bare areas, to check soil erosion, and to stabilize steep embankments.

Growing clusters or groves of bamboo clumps appear to present a more practical short-term approach to reforestation if combined with planting other types of fast-growing trees. #

(Email your feedback to jun@nordis.net)

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